I would have loved it if Forbes had accepted to play the character for the first season. I think Avery Brooks and her would have been sensational together. Then she leaves or die at the end of season 1, and is replaced by another Bajoran officer who's even more intense than Ro, Major Kira.

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This. But Forbes and S1 lethargic Brooks would have been a waste, and I doubt even she would have upped his game. Forbes and later-shouty Brooks a la Eddington? Much better

If not DS9, I wish they'd made Ro a regular cast member for the final season or two of TNG. Loved seeing her verbally spar with Picard, she was every bit his match and unlike some other characters was totally not intimidated by Picard's gravitas. Ro and Guinan were the two best female characters on TNG and they weren't even regulars (sadly).

Never in a million years would I have made that trade. Now, Ro and Forbes are both awesome, so if she had been on DS9 from the beginning it would have been fine. And the whole 'Ro was in Starfleet so the dynamic would have been different' could easily have been overcome with a simple uniform change. No problem.

But DS9 without Kira would be DS9 without its heart. She was the centre of that show from the very beginning, and I've always seen her as the main character, not Sisko. Visitor is an incredibly underrated actress too, and I think the show would have suffered a huge loss without her.

Over the years I have come to the realization that Kira is more or less my favorite character on that show. I love all of them (except maybe Worf, who was always kinda meh), but Kira-centric episodes, scenes and arcs tend to be the ones I love most about this show. I'm a huge fan of the Bajoran arc in the first two seasons and Kira is all over that. She's such a strong and at the same time very conflicted and often vulnerable character. Plus, Nana Visitor does a wonderful job portraying her.

I would not trade Kira Nerys for anything . Having Ro Larern would have been nice but in the end Ro would have had to submit to Sisko's demands .With Kira being a bajoran militia member she was argumentative with him.

Yeah, there's no way I'd trade Kira for Ro. I absolutely adore Kira. She was a bit abrasive at first, but that was understandable; the Bajorans had just gotten the Cardassians to leave, only to be (seemingly) replaced by the Federation. It's no wonder she was angry and resentful. She just wanted a free Bajor, for heaven's sake.

And anyway, her character just got better and better with every episode. By the second season, she had become my favorite female Trek character ever. I liked Ro, but Kira's frigging amazing. She's strong, resilient, and feisty, but also sweet, compassionate, and loyal. She's the best.

I'm comfortable enough to admit, I have a total girl-crush on Kira. I'm as straight as they come, but she's just so danged pretty. Curse her giant brown doe eyes.

I think a guest appearance from Michelle Forbes would have been great. Not a regular, but maybe just a one-off return where she and Kira clash over different ideals. I'd love to have seen that. But I wouldn't trade Kira for her. As others have already said, Kira Nerys is a much more dynamic character than Ro Laren. The fact alone that she isn't Starfleet makes a big difference (yeah I know, technically Ro wasn't by the end of TNG either). One of the things which makes Kira so great in the DS9 cast dynamic is that she's got her own life and largely her own agenda. She isn't tied to the uniform, but when she does eventually get to be part of Starfleet it feels like a logical progression for the character. Ro, on the other hand, was always part of Starfleet and despite her firey attitude she still had to follow orders. Most of the time.

I'm comfortable enough to admit, I have a total girl-crush on Kira. I'm as straight as they come, but she's just so danged pretty. Curse her giant brown doe eyes.

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I was in the minority apparently, crushing on Kira instead of Dax when the series was running when I was a teenager. Kira just seemed more genuine and real to me. Though thank goodness she changed her hair style after Emissary!

Ro's a fun character, and very tragic, but I don't think the DS9 posting would've suited her at all. Who knows, it could've been better, but it would've involved missing out on Kira. My main disappointment is we didn't see her in a guest role on DS9. With her joining the Maquis, she could've been involved in some interesting stories.